Means for automatically unlocking doors of public buildings.



T. A; STEVENSON. 1 ms ron AUTOMATICALLY UNLOGKING DOORS or PUBLIC BUILDINGS. APPILIUATION FILED JUNE 18,1908.

911,176. Patented Feb. 2,1909.

A TTORNE YT 1n: nonms PETERS ca, WASHINGTON n- :4

THEODORE A. STEVENSON, OF LANSING, KANSAS.

MEANS FOR AUTOMATICALLY UNLOCKING DOORS 01E" PUBLIC BUILDINGS.

7 Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed. June 18, 1908. Serial No. 439,167.

Patented Feb. 2, 1909.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THEODORE A. STE- VENSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lansing, in the county of Leavenworth and State of Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements. in Means for Automatically Unlocking Doors of Public Buildings, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to im rovements in means for automatically unloc ing the doors of public buildings, and it consists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of arts hereinafter described, pointed out in t e claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 re resents anjelevation of a door equip ed wit my invention. Fig. 2'is an irregu ar vertical section of the same on line II-II of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section on line IIIIII of Fig. 1.

1 designates a door-casing, and 2 and 3 a pair of doors secured to the casing by hinges 4 to open outwardly. Casing 1 1s provided with an upper notch orkeeper 5 and a lower keeper 6 to receive the ends of a pair of latchbars 7 and 8, respectively. Door 2 is held. closed by a lip 13*, on door 3 in the usual manner. Latch-bars 7' and 8 are pivotally connected to a section 9 of a compound latchlever consisting of section 9 and a section 10, pivotally secured to door 3 by screws 11 and 12, respectively, and pivotally connected by a pin 13. Latch-bars 7 and 8 extend through guides 14 15, respectively, secured to door 3.

16 designates a stop-pin projecting from door 3 to imit the upward movementof the free end of section 10, which is normally held against pin 16 by a spring 17 in order to hold the latch-bars in engagement with their keepers. I

18 designates an unlocking-bar which engages the free end of section 10, and is pro-- vided with a handle 19 whereby it may be depressed to ofperate the com ound lever for the urpose 0 releasing the atoll-bars from the eepers. Bar 18 is also provided with a pair ofeyes 20 through which a guide-rod 21, secured to the door-casing, extends. Said guide-rod is provided with an expansion.- spring 22 abutting at its ends against a screweye 23 and one of eyes 20 for the purpose of lifting bar 18 against a stop-pin 24 after it has been depressed to unlock the door. By.

thus automatically restoringzbar 18to its normal position it will be ready to engage thenotched free end of the compound lever when the doors are closed.

25 designates an operable platform which is yieldingly supported above the floor 26 by expansion springs 27 and connected to handle 19 by a rod 28 which extends through the platform and is provided at its lower termlnal with a nut 29 which engages the under side of the platform so that when the latter is depressed by step ing thereon, the latch-bar 18 will be drawn dhwnward and through the instrumentality of the compound latch-lever release the latch-bars from the kee ers. Rod 28 extends loosely through the p atform so that the latch-bar 18 may be depressed to unlock thedoors without depressing the platform." Theupward movement of the platform 25 is limited by bolts 30 depending therefrom, and nuts 31 engaging the lower ends of the bolts. Bolts 30 extend through springs 27, and are secured to the platform,

while nuts 31 normally engage the undersides of disks 32 secured to the underside of the floor. The forward edge 33 of the platform is beveled to prevent persons from trip ing over the same, and in order to prevent t em from catching their feet beneath the platform I provide a plurality of guard-strips 34 secured to the floor and extending around the front and side edges of the platform.

While the latch-bars may be released from the keepers by either stepping upon the platform 25 or depressing the unlocking-bar 18, I also provide means extending up to the floor above for releasing the latches so that when the invention is applied to the outer doors of a school building, a teacher on the upper floor may release the latches before the school children reach the doors. Simple means for performing this desirable o eration consists in a cable 35 secured at its ower end to latch-bar 8. and extending upward arounda air of guide-pulleys 36 to an upper floor 37 w ere it is provided with a knob 38.

When the latches are released the doors are are adaptedto contact with the rear sides of casings 40 to limit the expansion of the springs and prevent the same from leaving t e casings 40, which latter are secured to the door-casing by straps 44.

All of the locking mechanism is preferably applied to door 3 and the platform 25 extends only the Width of said door so that when desired door 2 may be left open for ingress andegress Without operating either the locking mechanism or the platform.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim is:

1. In combination, a pair of doors, a casing. therefor, locking devices on one of said doors adapted to engage keepers in the easing, a lever pivotally connected to said locking devices and the door carrying the same, and an operable platform suitably connected to said lever for actuating the same.

2. In combination, a door, a casing there for, keepers in the upper and lower portions of said casing, a compound lever pivoted to the door, a pair of latch-bars pivoted to said 20 lever and adapted to engage the keepers, an

unlocking-bar engaging one end of the lever and slidably secured to the casing, and an operable platform to which said unlockingbar. is connected.

3. In combination, a door, a casing therefor, keepers in the upper and lower portions of said casing, a compound lever pivoted to the door, a )air of latch-bars pivoted to said lever and a apted to engage the keepers, an

unlocking-bar engaging one end of the lever, 1

and an operable platform for actuating the unlocking-bar, said unlocking-bar being loosely connected to the platform so that it may be actuated independently thereof.

In testimony whereof I afl'ix my signature,

in the presence of two Witnesses.

THEODORE A. STEVENSON. Witnesses:

F. G. Frscr-rnn, M. Cox. 

